COMMERCE - Walled Lake Western football coach Mike Zdebski stood guard over the cake, warning that one slice was the legal limit among a gathering of parents, fellow students and supporters.
A group of hulking football players may have exceeded the limit, but it was all good during a signing ceremony Wednesday at the school media center for a dozen Walled Lake Western student-athletes.
Five sports were represented as the gathering of nearly 100 witnessed the ceremony.
Zdebski had the lions' share of signees with five players making their commitments for football. Quarterback Kyle Thomas, who led the Warriors to the Division 2 state semifinals, signed with the University of Findlay in Ohio. Teammates Tyler Shreve (Ferris State), Darnell Lanier (Saginaw Valley State), Javon Gabriel (Concordia) and James Hobson (Olivet) will also continue their football careers in college.
Zdebski talked about their contributions. "One of the better teams to come through walled Lake Western," he said of the squad, which finished with a 12-1 record and was ranked No. 1 in the state during portions of the season.
He also spoke of the other student-athletes, sitting at the table with their names, sports and colleges, who achieved. "All these kids here make us very proud, great representatives of our school," he said.
Other signees included Mollie Barnard, who will play soccer at Tiffin University; Mollie McGorisk, who will play soccer at Dartmouth; Sydney San Juan, who will play softball at Hillsdale; Kellie Abeska, who will play softball at Kent State; Mathiew Nordstrom, who will play lacrosse at University of Michigan-Dearborn; Joseph Bruce, who will play hockey at Lawrence Tech, and Lacinda David, who will compete in acrobatics and tumbling at Alderson Broaddus University in West Virginia.
School administrators beamed over the achievements of the group as well as the parents' support. "This is a major event for us," said Desmond Smith, assistant principal at Western. "I'd like to thank the coaches for putting in a lot of hours with the students."
Most of the student-athletes thanked their coaches and parents.
"Whenever I wanted to quit, they (parents) wouldn't let me, that's why I'm here now," said Nordstrom.
McGorisk will be headed to the East Coast in Hanover, N.H. to join the Dartmouth Univesity soccer team with a high academic standing, "as well as a competitive (athletics) school," she said.
Mollie Barnard was thankful for her parents' support. "I'd like to thank my mom and dad for coming to my games, especially the early ones," she said.
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